Frustrated Flyers try to turn power back on

By Wayne Fish Staff writer

Thursday

Jan 31, 2013 at 12:01 AMJan 31, 2013 at 6:00 AM

VOORHEES — Any way you cut it in the National Hockey League, special teams rule.

Which is one of the reasons why the Flyers, who haven’t been scoring many power-play goals (just five in 37 attempts) but giving up quite a few, currently reside in the Atlantic Division basement at 2-5.

Problem is, the Flyers have had many opportunities to work on their power play. When they get a day off from the schedule, coach Peter Laviolette usually has to give his players a rest day because of the seven-games-in-11-days whirlwind start to the season.

Wednesday, the Flyers finally found themselves looking at two off days, so they had a chance to work on the power play and did they ever. Most of the hour-plus was consumed with work on that aspect of the game.

What’s been the problem so far? Just a lack of working on it?

“If they’re not clicking in games, it’s really hard to arrange a practice time to work on them,’’ newcomer Mike Knuble observed. “So today was a hard-working day for a day off on our schedule here. There are things you have to get together in order to do well this year. Power plays were obviously a hundred percent of our focus today.’’

Knuble is one of those old-school grinders in front of the net. What needs to be done to fix the PP?

“Obviously there are skill guys on the power plays,’’ Knuble said. “Guys have been doing it their whole lives, they know what they’re doing. Sometimes it just comes back to basics ... a reminder to get pucks to the net. You have to get a little chaos going.’’

While Knuble can offer advice to players like Claude Giroux and Wayne Simmonds, it’s more “do as I do, not as I say.’’

“Am I going to have any magic words? I don’t think so,’’ Knuble said. “The big thing is what you’re doing around the ice. Talk is talk sometimes, it’s what you do on the ice.’’

Coach Peter Laviolette noted that some vital parts of the power play are missing right now, so others have to step up their games.

“We probably worked on it (the power play) eight of the first nine practices,’’ he said. “We haven’t been able to get back out there. We lost some pieces, (Scott) Hartnell, (Andrej) Meszaros. This was a chance to get guys back out there and see if we can dial that back up again.’’

So, one day after another disheartening loss, have the Flyers lost some of their swagger?

“The guys aren’t happy with where they are right now,’’ Knuble said. “It should be that way. The thing is having the right kind of anger. You have a chance to rewrite the story a little on Friday (in Washington). When anger turns into frustration and then it turns into finger-pointing, then it’s trouble.’’

When asked if his team has a crisis of confidence right now, Laviolette tried to put it in perspective.

“You’re talking about a team that just came home after a tough loss to a rival opponent in their building,’’ he said of the 2-1 loss to the Rangers on Tuesday.

“When you get out of bed, I don’t expect guys to come in here skipping along and whistling to a beat. It’s hard when you lose. In the course of the day, when you meet, practice (etc.) you change that angry feeling or that — not depressed — but upset feeling from what happened the night before and turn it into a positive for the next game.’’

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